Mia Davis closed her eyes, conjuring up Carmen's pretty face. Her smile had been contagious. She'd talked about her little brother all time, about how proud she was he'd participated in gym class without having a meltdown or had said thank you without being prompted. Things Mia took for granted.
Her heart hurt for Hunter. He was out there in this freezing cold, snow falling off and on, alone and scared. And on Christmas Eve, of all days. She shuddered and hugged herself.
"His name is Hunter Ramirez." It made sense for Kat, the head of TREX's Search and Rescue Unit, to take point, her husband Spencer at her side. She pointed at the large flat screen in the den. The image of a kid with oversized front teeth and an awkward smile on his face took up the entire TV. "Twelve years old. Brown hair and eyes. He struggles with social cues and is scared of strangers, so you may have to speak to his beagle, Buster, in order to get Hunter to talk. Call for Buster when you're out there. Hunter won't answer if you call for him. Now, I've set up the grid to start here."
"We'll find him," JT Weber assured Mia and pulled her into her arms, holding her close. "I promise, Mia. It'll be okay."
Why did TREX insist on making promises they'd never have the power to keep? As the wife of the special director, JT may have a lot of pull, but she couldn't promise something like that. It wouldn't be okay. Not for Carmen, who was now in the morgue. Not for Hunter, who might soon join his sister. Mia buried her face against JT's shoulder and fought the tears threatening to break her.
"Let's go." Spencer gave the order. The TREX agents scattered, leaving Mia standing there, numb and helpless. Wayde had already left to join his SBI unit at the scene of Carmen's death to comb for clues and rule out murder. It was routine for a team of agents to make an appearance at all potential homicides scenes.
The den, now dark and eerily silent, closed in on her. She didn't want to stay in this room and left to find something warm to drink. Absentmindedly rubbing her belly, protecting the baby growing inside her, she walked into the kitchen to find the oldest of the McKoy siblings already there, heating water in the kettle.
"Hey, I'm making tea." Charis smiled at Mia, something she always did. Smile. With dark brown hair and deep indigo eyes-traits she shared with all her siblings-she'd hit the gene pool lottery. Charis and her twin Chris got the curls. While her brother kept his hair short, Charis let hers grow long and wild. "You and Bethany get decaf for obvious reasons. Kat prefers OJ."
"Thank you," Mia whispered, not having the strength for anything else. One of the women she and Wayde had risked their lives to rescue had just taken hers. Tea wasn't going to make this situation any better. Nothing would.
"That didn't take long," Spencer said loud enough for everyone else to hear. He poked his head into the kitchen and rested his attention on Mia. "Wayde found him and is on his way here."
"Here?" A jolt of surprise rocked her. Why would he bring the boy here?
"It's Christmas Eve," Charis pointed out and handed her a steaming cup. "The chances they'll find a social worker are slim to none, let alone one with the skills to handle a special needs case."
Kaylee McKoy walked into the kitchen and grabbed a Diet Pepsi out of the fridge. "Even if they did find a case worker, they'd never find a place to house him tonight, not even temporarily. Foster care is tough enough without adding a kid who thinks differently." She cracked open the soda and took a long drink.
"What kind of special needs?" Mia asked. Before anyone answered, the front foyer erupted with shouts. There was a crash and a scream. Spencer disappeared, as did Kaylee. Mia and Charis hurried after them and skidded to a stop.
A kid covered in dirt and grime, his lips blue and teeth chattering, thrashed against the men trying to subdue him. He screamed over and over, the sound heartbreaking and frightening at the same time.
"Stop it!" Kaylee shouted. When no one listened, the petite and youngest McKoy shoved her way into the frenzy of testosterone, not hesitating to use her fists, elbows, and whatever else she needed to get to Hunter. "Can't you see you're scaring him? Stand down! Stand the hell down!"
Hunter shrank into the corner, his wide gaze jumping from man to man before resting on Kaylee. When she eased forward a step, he pushed himself tighter into the corner. She froze and asked, "Where's Buster?"
"Right here," Wayde answered as he walked in, a beagle in his arms. The dog squirmed and jumped down, immediately rushing to Hunter's side and standing between his master and the strangers surrounding them.
Hunter seemed to calm as he lowered to his knees and stroked Buster's head. To Mia's shock, Kaylee did the same and petted the dog. They didn't say anything, just knelt facing each other, running their hands down the beagle's back.
"Do you have any idea what's happening?" Wayde asked Mia.
"Buster is Hunter's therapy dog. I remember Carmen mentioning it during one of the group sessions. She thought having a therapy dog might help some of the women cope with what they'd been through."
He wrapped his arm around her and casually placed her behind him. "Why don't you fix him a plate of leftovers?"
"I can do that."
"Buster, too."
She nodded and returned to the kitchen. By the time she had a plate heaping with turkey and all the trimmings, Kaylee had Hunter at the sink washing his hands and face. She didn't touch him, instead demonstrating what she wanted him to do. They still hadn't said a word to each other.
Mia set one plate on the table and the other on the floor. Once Buster made a beeline for the food, Hunter took a seat at the table and grabbed the fork. Wayde tensed behind her.
"Relax," she said for his ears only. "He's not going to take out a room full of TREX agents with a fork."
"I didn't know where else to bring him."
"You did the right thing. He's safe here. So are we."
He kissed the back of her neck. "Lawson is on his way over with a couple unis to question him."
"Call them off," the special director said as he finally made an appearance at his own party, his attention on Hunter. "The boy isn't about to talk to anyone in a uniform. Look at him."
"He's not on display." Kaylee glanced over her shoulder, addressing the crowd that had pushed into the room. It was a large kitchen, but then again, TREX guys weren't small. When no one moved, she grabbed Buster's plate. "Come on, Hunter. Let's eat out there where we won't have an audience."
Without a word, Hunter followed her, plate in hand, head down. Dan Weber snagged Wayde's gaze. "Do you want to tell me what the hell that was about?"
"The kid had nowhere else to go."
"So you bring him to a TREX briefing? Are you mental?"
"Is that what this is?" Wayde challenged. "A briefing usually involves one party telling everyone else what's going on."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"You invite everyone here and then disappear. I don't know why you even bothered if you didn't plan to take part."
"You don't know why because it's above your pay grade, Agent Davis."
"I'm not Agent Davis right now, and I'm not about to let you call the shots. Not in my own home. What aren't you telling us?"
The director stormed out, leaving the rest of the agents all exchanging confused glances. As the silence grew, so did the tension. The looks of confusion transformed into glares and hardened expressions. Charis and Mia exchanged nervous looks and both retreated a step.
"I'm going to check on the boys," Charis said and left the room.
"Typical," Wayde growled.
"What did you just say?" David Snyder stepped into Wayde's personal space. "Do you have a problem with my wife?"
Wayde didn't back away. "Not your wife. I have a problem with your BFF, Weber. Once again, the special director is keeping something from the rest of us. Not exactly the best way to run things."
"Watch what you say about him. Holiday or not, he's still your boss."
"As am I." Spencer stepped between them before one of them threw a punch. "S
tand down, both of you." He sighed, looking tired. "That's an order."
"Figures you'd defend your pet project."
Spencer faced David. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Wayde isn't spec ops material, and you know it. Weber never even wanted him in TREX, and I trust our director's judgment."
"Over mine? Is that what you're saying?"
"That's exactly what I'm saying. You've been going against him for a while now. Trying to get him to step down on that find by invoking Rule #202 like he'd lost his goddamn mind was another nail in the coffin."
Spencer stiffened as his features turned to stone. He then recovered and defended his position. "He's gotten worse, and you know it."
"It's because recruiting all these new people is diluting the agency. That's why Weber is so selective over who he lets in. You need to trust him. He's the director for a reason."
"Yeah, because the last director died."
David's spine went ramrod straight. His usually jovial expression immediately hardened, as did his eyes. "You know what a piece of shit Donovan was. Who the hell are you to insinuate Weber took him out to get his job?"
"Boys," JT said softly and stepped between them. "Spence isn't insinuating anything." She gave him a warning look. "Isn't that right?" Spencer nodded curtly. She regarded David. "Why are you so upset about this?"
"I can't believe you're taking his side. He's considering having Wayde replace Chris on TREX Team Two."
"What else is he supposed to do? He needs a complete team."
"Are you saying I'm not a complete man?" Chris demanded, his jaw set. He used the forearm crutches to pull him closer. "Just because I can't walk without help doesn't make me any less of an agent."
"That's not what I said." JT shook her head. "I don't even know how you made that leap. If you have a problem with the man you are now, deal with it, but don't pretend you're fine and then take it out on everyone else."
"Just because you're sleeping with the boss doesn't give you the right to talk to my brother like that," Bailey cut in.
"Excuse me?" JT turned to her. "He's not the boss to me. He's my husband."
"I hate this agency," Mitch, the only McKoy sibling not in TREX, snarled before jumping his gaze around to the others.
"That's only because you can't get into it," Spencer fired back.
"Now just a damn minute."
"Let's calm down," Mia said, but it had already escalated. They all grew louder and louder as the insults got more personal. JT and Bailey looked ready to draw claws. David defended Chris while Spencer defended Wayde. Mitch spewed venom about how much he hated TREX. Seth and Logan were the smart ones and had already left the room.
"Screw this!" Wayde shouted above everyone else. "I want you all out."
"Wayde!" Mia's jaw dropped. "It's Christmas Eve."
"And I'm done with this bullshit. Why force us all together if it's obvious we don't get along?"
"For once, I agree with Wayde." David thrust out his chin. "As soon as I can find a hotel, we'll be out of here."
"Get Bethany and me a room, too. I'm not sticking around to listen to any more of this shit." Chris pulled himself out of the kitchen behind David.
Kat, who'd remained silent the entire argument, approached her husband. "It's not that long of a drive back to Olympia. I'll wake Emily if you get Jack ready. Are you okay to drive?"
"I'm a little tired. Let me talk to Wayde." Spencer kissed her forehead. After she left, he regarded Wayde. "Overreact much?"
"Sorry, Spence. I'm just so damn tired of the bickering. We're all adults. Can't we act like it?"
"And you thought tossing everyone out on Christmas Eve was acting like an adult?"
"Touch?."
"Should I bring everyone back in so you can yell at them again? This time you can just shout a single apology."
"No," Wayde chuckled and shook his head. "I was a global asshole. I'll make my apology a little more personal."
"Before you go, there's something I want to discuss with you." He drew in several breaths and ran his fingers through his thinning hair. Damn, did he look drained. "I guess the cat's out of the bag. I had hoped to do this under better circumstances. I'd like to offer you a spot on Team Two."
"Isn't that special operations?" Mia asked, not bothering to hide the worry in her tone. TREX's spec ops teams put themselves in the most danger and were gone for weeks at a time. She liked having a husband.
"There's a lot of training involved before he'd be field ready," Spencer explained. "We're expanding spec ops by four more teams." He looked at Wayde. "That's why the directors brought us here. They wanted us to work together on the dynamics of the new teams."
Wayde lowered his head. "A lot of good that did us. All it did was prove we can't work together at all. Forcing a bunch of hardheaded men and women together without telling them why was a disaster waiting to happen. Add one little twist in the form of a terrified kid?"
"Instant explosion," Spencer finished and sighed.
THREE